I was just wondering who was everyone's favorite veteran of all time to join the Devils (midseason or offseason)? and why?

The only reason why I ask because I remember reading an article that stated many veterans liked joining the Devils because they were always in playoff contention and wanted to sign there to hopefully get a shot to get the Stanley Cup. I tried coming up with a list above, but I am sure there are others people can think of as well.

With me, I would have to say I am split between Bernie Nicholls or Dave Andreychuk. Bernie was my first favorite Devil and I always loved Dave Andreychuk as a player.

Too hard to pick one
I liked Andreychuk...he did a lot to help the team, and he didn't want to leave as soon as possible...like some of the other vets we brought in.
Feel that way about Nieuwendyk too
And I liked A-Mo....he was something the Devils never had before...a real flashy goal scorer.

Broten seemed like a "What the hell, why not?" kind of move at the time, but he went on a tear offensively the second he put on a Devils jersey.

For me, it was Gilmour, though he never quite lived up to what I was hoping for once he got here (though the offense went on an immediate tear when he first came to the Devils). I was listening to the WFAN, and John Davidson was on, when right in the middle of his interview he suddenly said, "and the Devils just got Doug Gilmour"...I was like, "Yessssssssssssssssssssssssss!"...I couldn't have been more thrilled.

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THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

..though he never was meant to be more than anything but a back-up insurance policy, I absolutely freaked when we traded for Vanbiesbrouck. As a teenager in the 90's (and with the influx of American hockey) I grew up idolizing guys like Richter, Barrasso, and Vanbiesbrouck. Although it was during the twilight of his career, to see Beezer play for the Devils in any capacity was very special for me.

EDIT: Honorable mention.. Shanny's farewell tour.

Edited by Beezer34, 14 March 2012 - 10:31 PM.

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"..with 5 Stanley Cup Finals appearances, in a span of 17 years.. they've set the gold standard of how an organization should be run" -Brian Duff

"Quite frankly, all the players are getting paid too much and all the contracts are too long," general manager Lou Lamoriello said. "But if you want to compete in this market and you want to win, there are some things you have to do."

When is a player a veteran for this poll? My vote has to be for Scott Stevens.I think we forget he was a 9 year vet before coming to the Devils for 13 years.

Good point, though I was taking the poll to mean deadline deals and in-season trades. I remember being so shocked when I read in the paper that Stevens had been awarded to the Devils...though I'm pretty sure no one was more shocked than Stevens himself...was he PISSED!

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THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

I voted Mogilny. I thought he filled a spot that the team very much needed at the time. Solid second line scoring with Mogilny was huge, in my opinion. Although now, looking at the numbers, it doesn't appear that he contributed too many points in the playoffs that year.

Turner Stevenson. He quietly played a solid game and was a big part of our cup year. Very physical and good leader. Loved the Madden-Pandolfo-Stevenson unit and to this day one of my favorite 4th lines that had a little bit of everything in 03...Brylin-Rheaume-Stevenson.

Good point, though I was taking the poll to mean deadline deals and in-season trades. I remember being so shocked when I read in the paper that Stevens had been awarded to the Devils...though I'm pretty sure no one was more shocked than Stevens himself...was he PISSED!

I would think that, but the question was "I was just wondering who was everyone's favorite veteran of all time to join the Devils (midseason or offseason)?"

I voted Mogilny. I thought he filled a spot that the team very much needed at the time. Solid second line scoring with Mogilny was huge, in my opinion. Although now, looking at the numbers, it doesn't appear that he contributed too many points in the playoffs that year.

That was his tendency in both playoff years. It was not like his scoring went down, he just disappeared.

Nieuwy. The leadership on the '03 cup team helps a lot. Also, and I know this is stupid, the first stick I played with was a Nieuwendyk Hespeller, and I loved that stick (even though it was stiff as all hell).

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Sumus Legio
You don't turn this around in a couple shifts. Its going to take a little time, but I know the guys will come back. Because I can see it. -- Jacques Lemaire

I still remember the day that trade was done and how excited we were. The papers were all making references to Happy Gilmour the next day after the trade was done.

After years of seeing the Rags get star player after star player, it really felt like the Devils have finally become a big player. I know with the cup in 95 we arrived, but I remember my brother and his friends teasing me about how the Devils won it with a bunch of nobodies (wouldn't that make the accomplishment even more amazing then?). With Gilmour, now we had a big name to put up there and shove in their faces.

I did also feel at the time that Gilmour was only going to be short-term. Did anyone else feel that way too? I really don't think any Devils fan figured he would be here for the rest of his career or anything long-term.

It's not stupid.

And Joe was a terrific acquisition, and it's really too bad that he got hurt during the Cup run.

As much as I admire Nieuwendyk as a player, I still get the impression after all this time that he never wanted to be here. He still put on his best face though so I have to give him credit for that.

No, you're right, I missed that part...yeah, strange to leave Stevens off such a list, though maybe the OP was trying to avoid a landslide vote.

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THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!